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| Katarzyna Juszkiewicz |<\/span><\/p>\n On 8 August, the Great Bee Day is celebrated in Poland every year. This is a good moment to appreciate the role these insects play in our ecosystem, and assess the threats they face. Bees have been living on the roof of the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Silesia for four years. The entire project is carried out by, among others Miros\u0142aw Nakonieczny, PhD, DSc, Associate Professor from the Institute of Biology, Biotechnology and Environmental Protection.<\/span><\/p>\n Together with the scientists from the Faculty of Natural Sciences: Agata Nicewicz, PhD, and \u0141ukasz Nicewicz, MSc, he conducts research on the activities of honey bees in cities. \u201cDue to the fact that the university apiary is located in a polluted urban environment, both honey and bee pollen have been tested for the presence of lead, cadmium, and micronutrients: zinc and copper. It turns out that for several years the city bee has been doing great at cleaning the product\u201d explains Prof. M. Nakonieczny.<\/span><\/p>\n City honey is tasty and healthy also because city bees do not have to deal with spraying in cities. The university insects deal with a wide variety of plants that people plant in parks and gardens. Their diversity means that the taste of the produced honey is often a great surprise. As prof. Miros\u0142aw Nakonieczny explains, the product from the hives on the roof of the faculty is mainly acacia honey with the addition of\u2026 catnip.<\/span><\/p>\n We also have to keep in mind that bees play a major role in producing more than one-third of the food in the world. Without them, most types of vegetables and fruits, so important for us, would be missing. Without pollinators, at least 71 out of 100 different plants 90% of which is the source of our food, would become extinct in Europe.<\/span><\/p>\n To take care of bees, the University of Silesia joined forces with \u015al\u0105ski Zwi\u0105zek Pszczelarzy (the Silesian Beekeepers Association in Katowice). \u201cThe result was the joint organisation of the International Beekeeping Congress in March 2020 in Cieszyn. It was combined with an exhibition of equipment for beekeepers\u201d reminds prof. M. Nakonieczny. \u201cThe event resulted in establishing cooperation between the most important research centers in Poland in order to publish a scientific monograph on beekeeping at the University of Silesia Press.<\/span><\/p>\n \n<\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n <\/div>\r\n